Thursday, August 28, 2008

French Paper



French Paper, a family run paper mill that has been around since 1871, is a great place to find everything from amazing printed stationary and envelopes to kitchsy gifts created by Pop Ink and the French Paper Company. French Paper has also been a pioneer in conservation by powering their paper mill with a hydroelectric generator in the river at the base of their mill. You can also find a selection of recycled products which they began offfering in 1953. (Don't Feed The Animals plate above.)

Who can't use some fun patterned paper for wrapping gifts, printing on or using for a collage project. Best part? You can customize the colors, finishes, sizes and more. For all the fun options available click here.

Love this Pop Ink Set of Four Soaps. Great gift, or to keep for yourself! Not only are the soaps great to look at, but they are made in the USA of all natural essential oils. 

Adorable Decor-a-Board, available in a variety of whimsical designs. These are ready to hang and made out of recycled wood scraps and portions of unused lumber. You can check out the Little Red Samurai, I could not resist this fun combination! 

Xenia Taler

Anybody remodeling/redecorating a kitchen or bathroom? Look no further than Xenia Taler for amazing and beautifully crafted tiles for your counters, backsplash or anywhere that you want a bonus bit of beauty to admire. Xenia and her partner, Steven Koblinsky have been creating these little gems from their Toronto studio where they do everything from mixing the glazes to hand decorating the tiles. Don't fret if you don't need tiles for a wall, they also make tiles to be used as coasters and hot plates, as well as beautiful boxes. See for yourself. Check out Bird on a Vine.

There are so many amazing tile designs to choose from it was hard to pick just one that I liked. I really fell for this cute owl face, though, I love the close up of his big, wise eyes! 

Too bad these are already sold out! I really need to pick up one of these Bubble Girl Boxes- perfect to stash loose change, keys and odds and ends that end up all over! 

Hayden- Harnett


Hayden- Harnett is a fabulous design company based out of Brooklyn that creates all things fashion from gorgeous dresses and coats to duffels and carry-ons for travel. You can also find a beautiful selection of leather goods available including belts and cuffs. The styles they create are timeless, largely due to the modern fabrics they use that have both texture and pattern. Check out the merino wool sweater dress above, ready to be cozied up in for the Fall. 

Purchase this affordable Green Is Good tote and you can look good and feel good too, knowing that 100% of the proceeds go to helping Farm Aid promote local, organic and sustainable farming practices. Made out of heavy weight organic cotton canvas- great for toting to the store or around town instead of using plastic bags. 

One of my favorite products from Hayden-Harnett are their selection of cute coin purses'. These adorable little purses are available in a variety of spunky and bright prints and will just make you happy every time you use them!  

Weego Home


Weego Home is a Santa Monica, California based home store with a great online site;  making their product collections easy to access no matter where you live. The premise of the store came as an alternative to the stark ultra-modern look of many home stores  and to incorporate pattern, color and life into any room of your house. They do this by bringing in such fun lines as Dwell Bedding, Thomas Paul and Jonathan Adler. Check out their great selection, as well as their surprisingly affordable sale section!  

Love these (affordable, hurry they are from the sale section!) Melamine Gothic dessert plates. Can't get enough of the simple portrait design- definitely a great way to end a meal...       


Check out these fabulous, graphic dish towels. Just the dash of color you need in the kitchen, may even be too pretty to dry dishes with! Does anyone know who the designer of these are? Can't seem to figure it out...                                                                                                                   

I was so intrigued by this piece, I had to include it. This Chandelier Wall Light is made from a digitally printed canvas with backlighting and is available in three different color-ways. This is the perfect way to bring that bit of gothic inspiration without going all the way.                              
                                                                                                    

Romp


Romp started out as a Brooklyn storefront, but has since moved up New York's Hudson River Valley and is now a strictly online venture. Peruse their selection for unique and adorable children's toys, gift and decor as well as good stuff that stylish grown ups would love including furniture, stationary and lighting. Right here for the gorgeous collaged wood treasures above. 

I adore  this cute letter print. They recommend it for a kid's room or nursery, but I could easily imagine it in a modern kitchen or office. Click above to check out all the bright and cheery color options.                                                                                                                                                            

Most people are well aware of the Eames Case Study Rocker, but being that this is one of my all time favorite pieces of furniture, I just had to feature it, especially because the celery color is so delicious!                                                                                                                                                         


I am a big fan of anything that allows children to be creative and imaginative and I thought these Moroccan Dress Up Costumes were fun and original. The cape is stitched into a beautiful artistic statement with a fun, abstracted mask for extra impact!                                                          

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

skinnyskinny



If you're looking for organic, all natural skin products, check out skinnyskinny. All handmade in Brooklyn, skinnyskinny specializes in organic body products including soaps, bath salts and lip balms. Beautifully and tastefully packaged in 100% recycled material, skinnyskinny practices what they preach by purchasing wind power to cover all electricity usage as well as buying carbon offsets to cover anything they can't recycle, re-use etc. 

Some organic goodies offered by skinnyskinny include:




 This relaxing Lavender and Eucalyptus Bath Salt (it looks so relaxing by the sea) looks like it would smell delicious.  The sea salts in this product were harvested from a protected region in France. 







Perfect for gift giving, this unique Soap Gift Set includes 6 bars of 4.3 ounce soaps all wrapped in recycled paper. It comes ready to give in a tree-less gift box made from sustainable grass. 

Candy Store Collective


Check out the Candy Store Collective, an online store with a brick and mortar retail store located in my previous home town of beautiful San Francisco, CA. The Candy Store Collective has a mission to amass a unique selection of merchandise created by independent designers instead of the same old mass produced item you might find elsewhere. The owners of the Candy Store Collective strive to create a selection of goods that are creative, well made and interesting, and in my humble opinion, they do just that! Check them out online, or if your in the Bay Area @ 3153 16th Street .

Some of the Candy Store's delicious offerings: 

The Lady Tray by French company Ibride Designs. Beautiful laminated wood trays that look like they came from your favorite antique store, only without all the dust! Available in three different woman: Liu, Louise and Tara.                  


I am a sucker for dog stuff, just ask our shepherd mixes Olive and Pixel, so I just fell for the Elvis Pillow that is handmade in Brooklyn. Perfect for dog lovers, and made of silk screened cotton canvas with corduroy backs. 



Greener Grass Design


Greener Grass Design is a design oriented Houston, TX based online store that carries everything from bedding and jewelry to furniture and lighting. Many of their products are created by independent designers and you can also find great sustainable and organic products on their site. Their product categories pretty much cover the gamut and you can definitely find something to suit anybody's taste. Some of their designers include Bob's Your Uncle, Amenity and Thomas Paul. The link for the beautiful Tord Boontje and Emma Woofenden Glass above right here .

Some items I might have to pick up from Greener Grass Design: 

Really cool looking and would be gorgeous as a tabletop centerpiece. Definitely catches your eye! 


I couldn't resist this wall mounted coat hanger made out of powder coated steel. A modern lodge look at its finest! Check it out here.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Lexie Lew


Being owners of two mutts, we are constantly on the hunt for stylish and interesting new products for our dogs. Recently, I ran across this great designer of custom dog beds located in Brooklyn. For some reason I have this obscene addiction with buying beds for our dogs and this site did not help my cause! Not only are they designed with great pattern options available, but for me the clincher is the built in burrowing pocket! One of our dogs, the 7 month old, Pixel loves to sleep buried under the covers. Check out Lexie Lew and maybe your dog will suddenly need a new bed too!

Some of the great pattern options available.... I think I am leaning toward Lucy! 

(From top to bottom patterns: Lucy, Albert, Gus)

















Three Potato Four Shop



By far, one of my personal favorite online shops is Three Potato Four Shop  . With an amazing and ever changing collection of both vintage and new items, this shop has it all. The available categories include everything from home accessories and textiles to the most adorable children's toys and vintage decor. Along with the fabulous selection of goods, you get the added treat of beautiful photography with product shots that make you want to re decorate and clean your entire house!   

Some current Three Potato Four favorites include the following: 
* and if you love it too, hurry and buy because some of the items are one of a kind vintage!



Perfect for back to school, Three Little Pigs Pencil Case, can be used for much more than pencils- great little case to use for jewelry on trips. 



I saw these vintage Dutch Liquor Decanters and was in love! So unique and just the perfect amount of whimsy for any interior. Who wouldn't want a little city scape to dress up something as typical as liquor decanters? 

Notemaker




Notemaker is a great online store that features anything a person could need to fill up a desk and more! Everything from Moleskin Journals favored by Van Gogh and Picasso to 1930's reproduction antique rubber stamp sets. You can check out their newly launched well organized and beautifully designed online site right here  or if you are in Melbourne, Australia you can visit their brick and mortar store at 217 Queen Street  

Some of my favorite Notemaker Items: 

This would be perfect for my fiancee who is constantly searching for his sunglasses, wallet or phone. 

Set of 50 disposable placemats. Perfect for that lull in the dinner conversation!